Manic Panic

So the night before last Phinneus was without a wheel. Circumstances involving me not being at home and his wheel being forgotten....*sigh*. I was worried when I realized that he didn't have it and I wondered what kind of havoc he would wreak in it's absence. Then when I got home from work yesterday evening it seemed that all was well. Phin was under his liner again, but there wasn't the mass destruction I had envisaged. I have heard of other people's hedgehogs throwing tantrums and behaving strangely when their precious wheels are taken away; these are energetic creatures who need their exercise during their nightly activities.

But, as I say, I saw no damage. Then I took Phinneus out and realized that he was going to take his frustration out on me. He was in a dangerous mood. He popped and quilled up whenever I tried to touch his fur, any sound or movement caused him to ball up, and he seemed...well...bitey. He has never bitten me before (he had a few exploratory nibbles in the past, but they were harmless and there was no aggressiveness) but I could tell that he would now if I made one wrong move. I put him in his towel hoping he would calm down, but no cigar. Cuddle time was short. This morning he was less bitey and aggressive, but he scuttled around at top speed like a maniac. He wouldn't stand for petting and just wanted to run and hide in a dark place. I hope he calms down.

I had hoped to feed him some baby food via syringing it into his mouth in order to get him more nutrition. I went to target looking for syringes and lo and behold I explained to the pharmacy girl what I needed (something to feed baby food to a critter is what I said) and she gave me varying sizes of syringes for FREE! I love Target. But, seeing as Phin is in a dangerous mood, I figured it would be poor timing for me to hold him down and force food down his throat.